There’s a new quick service spot in EPCOT’s Future World. The Connections Eatery is located near the brand new Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind attraction. The back side of this new quick service restaurant is the new home to Starbucks at EPCOT, called Connections Cafe.
This new restaurant offers several creative plant-based options, and we were excited to try them all. There are two vegan entrees, several sides, and even a vegan milkshake!
A few things to note about this restaurant before reviewing the food we ate. For starters, this restaurant is new which means it’s very popular. Your best bet here is to mobile order, as the queue for ordering in person has been incredibly long. You will likely need to plan ahead for your mobile order, much like Woody’s Lunch Box used to be. Additionally, not everything that is plant-based is labeled as such on the app. We had no idea we could have gotten the coleslaw until after we ate and I was taking photos of the physical menu board. The milkshake was also not listed as plant-based on the app, but was on the sandwich board in the front of the restaurant and on the physical ordering menu. So plan ahead, but also check in to see what is plant-based in case you have some confusion.
The first thing we were eager to try was the Curry Spice Pizza. Curry and pizza is incredibly intriguing to me, the ultimate fusion meal! The pizza features a tikka masala for the sauce, vegan cheese, carrots, potatoes, peas, and a vegan lime yogurt drizzle. It also comes with a side of the Mediterranean Salad to enjoy.
First of all, this was some of the most pillowy pizza crust I’ve ever had. I expected it to be on the same level of PizzeRizzo, but this was so much better. The dough was light and had a great flavor. Most of the pizza just tasted like the yogurt, as we didn’t really get a drizzle, more of a covering. Towards the crust end we could finally taste the tikka masala. The vegetables were severely overcooked on it and held no texture. If I’m being honest, this would be better without the vegan cheese as it didn’t add much to it.
The salad that came with it was a mini version of the entree salad you can get. It has a light vinaigrette on it and was 98% lettuce. It did have some tomatoes and cucumber in it though to add some crunch. Overall we really enjoyed this entree, and it’s something I would gladly enjoy again. The slice of pizza was pretty hearty and the additional side salad made it a great meal.
The entree salad here is Niçoise-style Salad, which is listed under “Salads” and not under “Plant-based” on the menu. This salad features mixed greens with a dijon vinaigrette, wedge potatoes, tomatoes, olives, white beans, and the menu says green beans, but ours didn’t have any.
The bowl portion of this salad was actually very hefty, so I would truly call it a meal salad. The beans and potatoes added a more filling topping as well. I personally would have preferred the dressing to be a creamy dijon, but I have been told then it wouldn’t be a Niçoise (but I still think it would be better). The lettuce with this and the side salad were a bit over dressed and felt like they had been sitting for a bit, as the lettuce was a little wilted. But overall we enjoyed the salad as well. A great veggie heavy entree!
We of course also had to try the Mango-Coconut Milk Shake. I love mango and coconut, so I figured there was a high chance I would like this. I was correct in that thought! The milkshake was creamy and fruity. It also featured a pomegranate-molasses drizzle in the shape of Mickey. This was a perfect little cold treat for a hot day.
We really enjoyed this meal and this new location. The restaurant space is huge and has so much natural light. It’s a great location for a little break, whether you go to the side with Starbucks or the side for food. The food was pretty good, and much more creative than some of the options we’ve seen lately at the parks. Not to mention; it’s a whole faux meat free meal!
Price $
Review from May 2022.
